Headphones restricted to use with a particular controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or media device

ABSTRACT

In systems and methods that restrict a set of wireless headphones to use with a particular controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or media device, a controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or media device disposed within a controlled-environment facility wirelessly communicatively links a set of wireless headphones with the controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or media device. The controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or media device dedicates the set of wireless headphones to the controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or media device by restricting the set of wireless headphones to use with the controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or media device.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates generally to media and/or communicationsdevices adapted for use by residents of a controlled-environmentfacility, and more particularly to headphones dedicated to (i.e.,restricted to use with) a particular controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device.

BACKGROUND

According to the International Centre for Prison Studies, the UnitedStates has the highest prison population per capita in the world. In2009, for example, 1 out of every 135 U.S. residents was incarcerated.Generally, inmates convicted of felony offenses serve long sentences inprison (e.g., federal or state prisons), whereas those convicted ofmisdemeanors receive shorter sentences to be served in jail (e.g.,county jail). In either case, while awaiting trial, a suspect or accusedmay remain incarcerated. Traditional methods for dissemination ofeducation or entertainment media in controlled-environment facilitieshave included print libraries, or the like. However, during his or herincarceration, an inmate may be afforded opportunities to communicatewith the outside world and/or consume audio and/or video content.Traditionally, jails and prisons have allowed inmates to contact friendsand family via letters and telephone calls. More recently, jails andprisons have begun to allow inmates to use portable electronic devices,such as tablet computing devices, smartphones, or the like, tofacilitate contact with friends and family and/or for entertainment andeducation.

SUMMARY

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.

The present invention is directed to systems and methods which providewireless headphones restricted to use with a particularcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice. Therein, a controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device disposed within acontrolled-environment facility wirelessly communicatively links a setof wireless headphones, which may include a microphone, with theparticular controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device. The controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device dedicates the set of wireless headphones to thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice by restricting the set of wireless headphones to use with thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice. This restriction of the set of wireless headphones to use withthe controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice may employ serialization of the set of wireless headphones usingserial numbers of the set of wireless headphones and thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, during linkage of the set of wireless headphones with thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice.

According to some aspects of the present systems and methods, therespective controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device may have a (persistent) wireless headphones applicationprogram (app) installed and running thereon, configuring the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice to wirelessly communicatively link the respective set of wirelessheadphones with the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device and dedicate the respective set ofwireless headphones to the respective controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device by restricting use of the setof wireless headphones to use with the controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device.

According to some (other) aspects of the present systems and methods, anoperating system of the respective controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device may configure the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice to wirelessly communicatively link the respective set of wirelessheadphones with the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device and dedicate the respective set ofwireless headphones to the respective controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device by restricting use of the setof wireless headphones to use with the controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device.

According to further aspects of the present systems and methods, therespective controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device, or the respective headphones themselves, may interruptplay of media over the respective set of wireless headphones, inresponse to receipt of a notification (wirelessly) transmitted by thecontrolled-environment facility, within the controlled-environmentfacility and play the notification over the respective set of wirelessheadphones. The controlled-environment facility may also be enabled toconfigure the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device and the respective set of wirelessheadphones, remotely, and/or enabled to monitor communication betweenthe respective controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device and the respective set of wireless headphones,remotely.

According to other aspects of the present systems and methods, therespective controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device and/or respective headphones may detect short-rangewireless signals not associated with the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice and/or the respective set of wireless headphones and generate analert to the controlled-environment facility as to a location of, and/ortransmit to the controlled-environment facility, the detectedshort-range wireless signals.

In various embodiments, one or more of the techniques described hereinmay be performed by one or more computer systems. In other variousembodiments, a tangible computer-readable storage medium may haveprogram instructions stored thereon that, upon execution by one or morecomputer systems, cause the one or more computer systems to execute oneor more operations disclosed herein. In yet other various embodiments,one or more systems may each include at least one processor and memorycoupled to the processor(s), wherein the memory is configured to storeprogram instructions executable by the processor(s) to cause thesystem(s) to execute one or more operations disclosed herein.

The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technicaladvantages of the present invention in order that the detaileddescription of the invention that follows may be better understood.Additional features and advantages of the invention will be describedhereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the invention. Itshould be appreciated that the conception and specific embodimentdisclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designingother structures for carrying out the same purposes of the presentinvention. It should also be realized that such equivalent constructionsdo not depart from the invention as set forth in the appended claims.The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of theinvention, both as to its organization and method of operation, togetherwith further objects and advantages will be better understood from thefollowing description when considered in connection with theaccompanying figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, thateach of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration anddescription only and is not intended as a definition of the limits ofthe present invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Having thus described the invention in general terms, reference will nowbe made to the accompanying drawings, which are not necessarily drawn toscale, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic illustration of an examplecontrolled-environment, wherein an example embodiment of the presentheadphones restricted to use with (dedicated to) a particularcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice may be employed while in a controlled environment facility, inaccordance with some embodiments;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of an example process for dedicating a set ofheadphones for use restricted to a particular controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device, in accordance withsome embodiments;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of a computer system, device, station, orterminal configured to implement various techniques disclosed herein,according to some embodiments.

While this specification provides several embodiments and illustrativedrawings, a person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that thepresent specification is not limited only to the embodiments or drawingsdescribed. It should be understood that the drawings and detaileddescription are not intended to limit the specification to theparticular form disclosed, but, on the contrary, the intention is tocover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within thespirit and scope of the claims. Also, any headings used herein are fororganizational purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope ofthe description. As used herein, the word “may” is meant to convey apermissive sense (i.e., meaning “having the potential to”), rather thana mandatory sense (i.e., meaning “must”). Similarly, the words“include,” “including,” and “includes” mean “including, but not limitedto.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The invention now will be described more fully hereinafter withreference to the accompanying drawings. This invention may, however, beembodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limitedto the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments areprovided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and willfully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Oneskilled in the art may be able to use the various embodiments of theinvention.

For example, various types of controlled-environment facilities arepresent in today's society, and persons may be voluntary or involuntaryresidents of such facilities, whether temporarily or permanently.Examples of controlled-environment facilities may include correctionalinstitutions (e.g., municipal jails, county jails, state prisons,federal prisons, military stockades, juvenile facilities, detentioncamps, home incarceration environments, etc.), healthcare facilities(e.g., hospitals, nursing homes, mental health facilities,rehabilitation facilities, such as drug and alcohol rehabilitationfacilities, etc.), restricted living quarters (e.g., hotels, resorts,camps, dormitories, barracks, etc.), and the like. For convenience ofexplanation, various examples discussed herein are presented in thecontext of correctional facilities, or the like. For instance, in someof the embodiments discussed below, a controlled-environment facilitymay be referred to as a correctional facility, jail or prison, and itsresidents may be referred to as inmates, arrestees, or detainees. Itshould be understood, however, that the systems and methods describedherein may be similarly applicable to other types ofcontrolled-environment facilities and their respective residents (e.g.,a hospital and its patients, a school dormitory and its students, commoncarrier vehicles and their passages, etc.).

Embodiments of the present systems and methods relate generally to mediaand/or communications devices adapted for use by residents of acontrolled-environment facility. However, it is not desirable to provideresidents such as inmates of correctional facilities corded headphones,ear buds, or the like, since these cords might be used as weapons,vandalized and/or otherwise misused. Hence, the present systems andmethods relate specifically to headphones dedicated to (i.e., restrictedto use with) a particular controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device. As used herein, the term “headphones”refers to: over the ear, on the ear headphones, etc. having speakerearcups, or the like, and a head band, neck band, or the like connectingthe ear cups; earphones, earbuds, or the like, which may be connected bya cord extending between them, or not; a personal (powered) speaker;and/or other devices for listening to media played by media and/orcommunications devices, or the like.

In accordance with embodiments of the present systems and methods, aparticular set of headphones are wirelessly connected to a particularcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice through a secure application program (app) on thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, and/or through a modified operating system of thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice. This app, and/or the device operating system are configurable inaccordance with rules regulations, restrictions and/or the like of thecontrolled-environment facility in which the headphones andcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice are being used.

In accordance with embodiments of the present systems and methods, theapp, and/or the device operating system, will allow only a specified setof headphones to be connected to the particular controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device (on which the app isrunning) or vice versa. The present wireless headphones may also includea microphone incorporated into the headphones, which is likewise linkedexclusively to the particular controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device.

The controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice and headphones so linked may be used to place or receive voiceand/or video calls, under the control of a controlled-environmentfacility communication processing system, or the like. Likewise theexclusively linked controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device and headphones may be used to listento music, and/or audio content of videos, downloaded or streamed to thelinked controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device in accordance with rules regulations, restrictions and/orthe like of the controlled-environment facility. Thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice and headphones so linked may be used to listen to audio contentof video games, educational content, and/or the like. In accordance withsome embodiments of the present systems and methods, the headphones, solinked may also restrict controlled-environment facility residents, suchas correctional facility inmates from listening to certain content.Also, in accordance with embodiments of the present systems and methodsheadphones so linked may enable controlled-environment facilityadministration to barge into the headphones for announcements. In someimplementations a headphone microphone may be used to control orotherwise interact with the video games, educational content, and/or thelike, if supported by the video game, educational content, and/or thelike.

A controlled-environment facility may implement the present wirelessheadphones to communicate with residents/inmates. In such embodiments,announcements, or other notifications to controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media devices, and in accordance withembodiments of the present systems and methods, play of media, or thelike, on a controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device may be interrupted (e.g., muted, paused, terminated, or thelike), as appropriate with respect to the media content. Thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice headphone app, or the like may then play the notification overthe linked headphones. Alternatively, or additionally, in someimplementations the controlled-environment facility may transmit thenotification directly to the present wireless headphones. In suchimplementations short-range wireless protocol, or similar, transmitters,which may include Ultra-Wide Band (UWB), Bluetooth, ZigBee, and WirelessUSB, or similar, transmitters of controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media devices linked to the particularheadphones, or in some embodiments all controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media devices regardless of whether thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevices are so linked, may be used to transmit the notification to anyand all of the present wireless headphones. Such notifications may bedirected to all, some, or one particular controlled-environment facilityresident and thereby to all, some, or one particularcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice and/or headphones, as described above. For example, the messagemay be directed to a select group of controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device and/or headphones,controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevices and/or headphones in a particular area of thecontrolled-environment facility, and/or the like.

In accordance with embodiments of the present systems and methods,headphones 105 may incorporate Global Positioning System (GPS)technology which may be used by the controlled-environment residentcommunication and/or media device headphones app, or the like, to locateor track lost or stolen headphones, including through the use of “crowdGPS” for headphones reported as lost or stolen. Similarly, oralternatively, the controlled-environment resident communication and/ormedia device may employ the headphones app, or the like, to find lost orstolen headphones using detection of short-range wireless protocolsignals emitted by the headphones.

In embodiments of the present systems and methods,controlled-environment facilities may be enabled to configure and/ormonitor the controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device headphone app, and/or related aspects of theoperating system of the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media devices, remotely. For example, the app,and/or related aspects of the operating system of thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevices, may be configurable based on the facility, site, area withinthe facility, and/or with respect to an individual resident/inmate, orgroup of residents/inmates.

Furthermore, in accordance with some aspects of the present systems andmethods, the controlled-environment facility may be enabled to detect,monitor and/or locate (all) authorized and unauthorized short-rangecommunication devices within the facility (and nearby) through thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice headphone app and/or the (modified) operating system of thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevices.

The controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice headphone app may be exclusively offered oncontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevices offered or provided by a particular controlled-environmentfacility vendor. Likewise, the wireless headphones of the presentsystems and methods may be exclusively offered, or otherwise provided bythe same controlled-environment facility vendor, for exclusively linkingto a particular controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device provided by the controlled-environment facilityvendor. In accordance with some such embodiments, the app or operatingsystem of the controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media devices provided by the controlled-environment facilityvendor may disallow all other short-range communication standard devicesfrom paring with it. Likewise, the wireless headphones offered by thecontrolled-environment facility vendor may be configured to only allowconnection, via a short-range wireless protocol, or the like, to aspecified controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device provided by the controlled-environment facility vendor. Inaccordance with the above, the wireless headphones andcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevices of the present systems and methods may be co-branded.

Thus, in accordance with embodiments of the present systems and methodswhich restrict a set of wireless headphones to use with a particularcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, a controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device disposed within a controlled-environment facilitywirelessly communicatively links a set of wireless headphones with thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice. The controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device dedicates the set of wireless headphones to thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice by restricting the set of wireless headphones to use with thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice.

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic illustration of example controlled-environment100, wherein an example embodiment of present headphones 105 dedicatedto (restricted to use with) a particular controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device 110 may be employed, inaccordance with some embodiments. In environment 100, communicationsprocessing system 115 may provide telephone services, videoconferencing,online chat, and other communication services to residents ofcontrolled-environment facility 120. In some cases, such as illustrated,communications processing system 115 may be co-located withcontrolled-environment facility 120. Alternatively, or additionally, anexternal centralized communication processing system may be deployed ina controlled-environment facility vendor (e.g. a controlled-environmentfacility communications provider) datacenter 125, or the like. That is,communications processing system 115 may be centrally and/or remotelylocated with respect to one or more controlled-environment facilitiesand/or may provide communication services to multiplecontrolled-environment facilities, in which case, controlled-environmentfacility 120 is illustrated as one example. Such acontrolled-environment facility vendor datacenter may be connected tosuch facilities via a public network (e.g. the Internet) or a privatenetwork (e.g. intranet) 130, or the like (e.g. via a secure tunnelingprotocol over the internet, using encapsulation). More generally,however, it should be noted that communication system 115 may assume avariety of forms, including telephony switches such as electronicswitching systems, or the like, and/or and may be configured to serve avariety of facilities and/or users, whether within or outside of acontrolled-environment facility.

Residents may use more-or-less conventional telephones 135 to accesscertain communication services. However, in accordance with embodimentsof the present systems and methods, residents may also use acontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice 110, or the like, such as in conjunction with present headphones105 dedicated to (restricted to use with) a particularcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice. For example, personal computer wireless devices, such as atablet computing device or smartphone (110), which may have been adaptedand/or approved for use in controlled-environment facility, may be usedby controlled-environment facility residents for communication. Such apersonal resident device may be referred to as an Intelligent ResidentDevice (IRD), “controlled-environment facility personal communicationand/or media device,” or the like, in controlled-environment facilities,in general. These may include “controlled-environment facility personalresident communication and/or media devices,” and may be referred to asan Intelligent Inmate Device (IID), “inmate personal communicationsand/or media device,” or the like, in a correctional institutionenvironment.

Additionally, or alternatively, a resident may use a“controlled-environment facility resident communal communication and/ormedia terminal” 140, or the like, to place voice calls, as well as forvideo communication, execution of other application programs (apps),including media apps, games, job search apps, etc. Such acontrolled-environment facility video communication terminal may bereferred to as an Intelligent Facility Device (IFD), which may be avideo phone particularly adapted for use in a controlled-environmentfacility. Generally speaking, multiple controlled-environment facilityresident communal communication and/or media terminals/IFDs 140 aredisposed in a controlled-environment facility, and may be disposed in avisitation room, in a pod, as part of a kiosk, as an alternative to acontrolled-environment facility communication kiosk, etc. As will beappreciated, IRD 110, IFD 140, or other similar devices have videoconferencing capabilities, or the like, to enable a party to participatein video communication sessions with other call parties, such asnon-residents of the controlled-environment facility, via videocommunication, secure online chat, etc. In some cases, IFD 140 mayassume the form of any computer, tablet computer, smart phone, etc., orany other consumer device or appliance with videoconferencingcapabilities. For example, in a correctional facility environment atablet computing device (e.g., an IRD 110) may be mounted on a wall, ina hardened case, as a controlled-environment facility resident communalcommunication and/or media terminal or IFD (140). IFD 140 may also takethe form of a docking station adapted to support and interface with anIRD 110 to provide communication, data, or other services.

Personal controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia devices, IRDs 110, may be tablet computing devices, smartphones,media players, smart watches, or the like adapted and/or approved foruse by residents of the controlled-environment facility (within thecontrolled-environment facility). Each IRD 110 may be particularlyadapted for use in a controlled environment. For example, in acorrectional institution, jail, or the like, such an IRD, or IID, mayhave a specifically adapted operating system and/or may be“stripped-down,” particularly from the standpoint of what apps and/orhardware are provided or allowed on IRD 110, and/or connectivityafforded such an IRD. For example, such an IRD may employ an operatingsystem kernel built for use in such an IRD in a controlled-environmentfacility. As a further example, the IRD may be adapted to only connectto a network provided by the controlled-environment facility, and/or inonly certain locations, within the controlled-environment facility, suchas may be controlled by availability of Wi-Fi access, or the like, onlybeing available in certain areas. That is, for example, where streamingand/or downloading may be compartmentalized, leveraging the (concreteand steel) structure (i.e. construction, layout, etc.) of thecontrolled-environment facility, for example, limiting the availabilityof a Wi-Fi signal, providing the stream through the placement ofwireless access points, antenna directionality of such wireless accesspoints, and/or the like. Further, the IRD may allow access to apps orcontent only upon application of security measures, by the IRD. Suchsecurity measures may include determining, by the IRD, DNS spoofing, DNSredirection, use of proxy servers for privacy and security, biometricvalidation, password validation, and/or the like. Also, in accordancewith embodiments of the present systems and methods, the IRD may have afew fixed apps pre-installed on the device, and installation of furtherapps on the device may be forbidden (i.e. prevented by modifications tothe device's operating system, or the like) and/or restricted, such asby requiring permission from a facility administrator, or the like. Appsprovided on IRDs might include apps of particular interest to residentsof the controlled-environment facility. For example, IRDs provided toinmates of correctional facilities, might include apps that may be ofparticular use to an inmate, in general, such as access to a legalresearch service, or of more specific interest, such as providing aninmate nearing release, access to employment searching apps or the like.Hence, such inmate IRDs may be used to help soon to be released inmatestransition. For example, the IRD may be used to communicate with afuture employer, or the like. As such, IRDs may be sponsored, orotherwise subsidized by organizations or companies, assisting with thetransition of inmates into society, or the like.

Hence, in accordance with embodiments of the present systems andmethods, the operating system for each of these controlled-environmentfacility communication and/or media devices, or a persistent app runningeach of these controlled-environment facility communication and/or mediadevices (under the operating system) or the like, may, in accordancewith embodiments of the present systems and methods restrict headphones105 to use with a particular controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device (110). To wit, controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device 110 wirelesslycommunicatively links with wireless headphones 105, such as by “paring”with the headphones via a short-range communication standard andrespective short-range communication hardware and functionality incontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice 110 and wireless headphones 105. Such a short-range communicationstandard may include UWB, Bluetooth, ZigBee, Wireless USB, and/or thelike. Upon which, wireless headphones 105 are restricted to use withcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice 110, such as by serializing the headphones using serial numbersof headphones 105 and controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device 110 the during the pairing process,thereby dedicating wireless headphones 105 to use withcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice 110. That is, the respective set of wireless headphones is notallowed to be “paired” or otherwise linked to another(controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or media)device, and vice versa, the device is not allowed to be paired with anyother headphones. The wireless headphone app (persistently) running onthe controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, and/or the operating system of the controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device may link the deviceand headphones, and/or dedicate the headphones to the device. Throughsuch pairing linkage of headphones 105 and controlled-environmentresident communication and/or media device 110 and/or predeterminedassignment of a particular set of headphones to a particularcontrolled-environment resident communication and/or media device, orthe like headphones 105 may, in accordance with embodiments of thepresent systems and methods be restricted not only from use with othercontrolled-environment resident communication and/or media devices, butalso from use with contraband device (e.g. contraband cell phones), orthe like.

Controlled-environment facility communication processing system 115and/or centralized controlled-environment facility vendor datacenter 125may be enabled to configure wireless headphones 105,controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice 110, and/or a wireless headphones app (persistently) running onthe controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, remotely.

In various embodiments, to access communication services, a resident mayinitiate approved telephone services by lifting the receiver ontelephone 135 or IFD 140, and/or otherwise initiating a call, such as bylaunching a communications app on IRD 110 (or IFD 140). At which time,the resident may be prompted to provide a personal identification number(PIN), other identifying information and/or biometrics. An InteractiveVoice Response (IVR) unit (not shown, but which may be integrated intocommunication processing system 115) may generate and play a prompt, orother messages, to the resident on device 110, 135 or 140. Which, inaccordance with the present systems and methods may be heard overheadphones 105 with respect to a call initiated bycontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice 110. To wit, wireless headphones 105 may also include amicrophone, such as may be incorporated into the headphones' housing.Under the control of communication processing system 115, devices 110,135 or 140 may be capable of connecting to a non-resident's (i.e., aperson not incarcerated or otherwise committed to acontrolled-environment facility) telephone 145 across a PubliclySwitched Telephone Network (PSTN) 150. For example, telephone 145 may belocated at a non-resident's home or office, at a resident visitationcenter, etc. Telephony switch 155, in communication processing system115, may be used to connect calls across PSTN 150. Additionally oralternatively, the non-resident may communicate using device 160, whichmay be a mobile phone, tablet computing device, personal computer, orthe like, which may be connected through an Integrated Services DigitalNetwork (ISDN), Voice-over-IP (VoIP), or packet data network (such as,for example the Internet), a wireless communications network, or thelike 130. Telephony router 165 of communication processing system 115 isused to route data packets associated with a call connection to device160. For example, a non-resident party may have a device 160 with abuilt-in front-facing camera, or the like, and an integrated display(e.g., a smart phone, tablet, etc., as illustrated), a personal computerwith a webcam, etc. A network connection between the parties may beestablished and supported by an organization or commercial service thatprovides computer services and software for use in telecommunicationsand/or VOIP, such as SKYPE®. Additionally, or alternatively, thecorrectional facility and/or the destination may use videoconferencingequipment compatible with ITU H.323, H.320, H.264, and/or V.80, or othersuitable standards.

Centralized investigative data aggregation and analysis system 170 maybe a platform for providing investigative tools in communication, suchas via public network 130, with controlled-environment facility 120,namely controlled-environment facility communications processing system115, and/or the like. Such investigative tools may provide collection,processing, analysis, and/or reporting of information for intelligencepurposes. In some embodiments, the investigative tools may providefunctions such as entity linkage analysis, communication statistics,organization analysis, communication behavior analysis, subscriptionusage analysis, common communication analysis, timelines, correlations,mapping, word search, language translation (whether machine translationor access to translation services), call recording (whether terminatedexternal to the controlled-environment facility or internally thereto),call notification, call monitoring (whether real-time or recorded, andwhether monitoring a particular call or a plurality of calls), call“barging,” call control, visitation monitoring/background checking,crime tip conduit, account activity monitoring (whether tracing depositsand expenditures of monies or monitoring account trends and behavior,such as velocity of transactions), multiple database querying, andresource integration, and/or the like. One or more of theseinvestigative tools may be provided through an intuitive user interfaceto provide ease of use, facilitate operation across a variety of userterminals, and/or to facilitate remote access to one or more featuresthereof. For example, in some cases, a web-based portal enablingindividuals to store and transmit information, including forensic toolsthat analyze communications into and out of controlled-environmentfacilities to assist law enforcement may be provided. Such a web pageportal may have menus comprising an investigator dashboard, to presentand facilitate execution of various investigative operations. Theseinvestigative tools may log calls (e.g., as Call Detail Records (CDRs)),so that an investigator may research them through an archive and may beprovided access to internal and/or external criminal databases and/orother sources of useful information.

In addition to providing certain visitation and communicationoperations, communication processing system 115 may attempt to ensurethat a resident's calls, video conferences, online chats, etc. areperformed only with non-residents whose identities, devices, emailaddresses, phone numbers, etc. are listed in that resident'sPre-Approved Contact (PAC) and/or Pre-Approved Number (PAN) list. Eachresident's PAC and/or PAN list(s) may be stored, for example, in (a)database(s) maintained by controlled-environment facility vendordatacenter 125, centralized investigative data aggregation and analysissystem 170, and/or the like. In addition to PAC and/or PAN list(s),controlled-environment facility vendor datacenter 125, centralizedinvestigative data aggregation and analysis system 170, and/or the like,may also store Resident Profile Data (RPD), as well as communicationand/or visitation rules applicable to each resident. Thiscontrolled-environment facility vendor datacenter 125 and/or centralizedinvestigative data aggregation and analysis system 170 database(s) mayinclude information such as balances for resident trust and callingaccounts; trial schedule; conviction data; criminal record; sentencingdata, such as time served, time remaining to be served, and releasedate; cell and cellmate assignments; resident restrictions and warnings;commissary order history; telephone call history; call recordings; knownor suspected gang or criminal affiliations; known or suspectedaffiliates, accomplices, or gang members; and any other information thatmay be relevant or useful to correctional facility staff to house andmaintain residents. Controlled-environment facility resident accountmanagement system 175, which may be a separate system, or which may be apart or function of controlled-environment facility vendor datacenter125, as illustrated, may maintain resident accounts to the benefit ofthe respective resident, such as resident commissary accounts, residentcommunications accounts, which may be used to pay for purchase of acontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice (110), paired headphones 105, communications, such as phonecalls, video visitation, internet chats, emails, text messages, or thelike. Likewise, in accordance with some embodiments of the presentsystems and methods controlled-environment facility vendor datacenter125, centralized investigative data aggregation and analysis system 170,and/or the like, particularly, resident account management system 175may maintain information about restrictive linkages ofcontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevices (110) and respective assigned headphones (105), includingpredetermined assignment of a particular set of headphones to aparticular controlled-environment resident communication and/or mediadevice.

In some implementations, communication processing system 115 may beconfigured to perform communication monitoring operations, such beingconfigured to monitor and or record communication sessions (e.g., aselectronic video files). In accordance with some embodiments of thepresent systems and methods, controlled-environment facility 120, and/orcentralized controlled-environment facility vendor datacenter 125, mayissue, such as via controlled-environment facility communicationprocessing system 115, wirelessly transmitted notifications to one ormore controlled-environment facility controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media devices 110 and/or directly to oneor more wireless headphone sets 105. Such direct notifications toheadphones 105 may be sent directly to wireless headphones 105 bybroadcasting the notification on (a) frequenc(y)(ies) used by theshort-range protocols employed in accordance with embodiments of thepresent systems and methods. Controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device 110, the wireless headphones app(persistently) running on controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device 110, and/or wireless headphones 105that directly receiving the notification may interrupt play of media onthe controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice 110, by muting, pausing, terminating, etc. play of the media in amanner best suited for that media. Controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device 110 and/or headphones 105then plays the notification over wireless headphones 105.

As noted, in accordance with some embodiments of the present systems andmethods, controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia devices 110, may be able to detect short-range wireless protocolsignals not associated with the detecting controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device and/or a set ofwireless headphones (105) dedicated thereto. Controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device 110 may generate andalert to the controlled-environment facility (i.e.controlled-environment facility communication processing system 115, orthe like), and/or centralized investigative data aggregation andanalysis system 170, to a location of the detected short-range wirelesssignals. Hence, in some embodiments of the present systems and methods,the alerts provided herein in response to detection, by acontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice (110), of short-range wireless protocol signals, or the like, maybe routed to, or via, centralized investigative data aggregation andanalysis system 170, such as to alert or notify investigative personnel,other personnel associated with the controlled-environment facility(120) in which the reporting controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device is located, or the like. Additionally,or alternatively, controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device 110, may re-transmit (forward) the short-rangewireless signals to the controlled-environment facility, and/or thecentralized investigative data aggregation and analysis system, formonitoring.

Likewise, contraband wireless communication device detection may use oneor more controlled-environment facility communication and/or mediadevices 110 and/or wireless headphones 105, through short-rangecommunication protocol signal detection, and/or they may each include aradio frequency detection mechanism configured to detect presence ofelectromagnetic energy emissions in one or more frequency bands reservedfor wireless communication by wireless communication devices. In suchembodiments, each controlled-environment facility communication and/ormedia device reports detection of the presence of the electromagneticenergy emissions in one or more frequency bands reserved for wirelesscommunication by wireless communication devices and/or short-rangecommunication protocol signals to an investigative data aggregation andanalysis system 170. The location of the reporting device(s) and/orsignal strength of the emission(s) and/or short-range signals may beused by the investigative data aggregation and analysis system todetermine a location, within the controlled-environment facility, of acontraband wireless communication device emitting the electromagneticenergy emissions and/or short-range communication protocol signal.

Centralized investigative data aggregation and analysis system 170, orthe like, may function to determine, and/or refine, a location of adetected contraband wireless device, using location of the reportingcontrolled-environment facility communication and/or media device(s),signal strength(s), directionality(s) and/or the like of the detectedshort-range wireless protocol signals, data concerning the structure ofthe controlled-environment facility, triangulation, and/or the like.Such detection and determination, and/or refinement, of a location of adetected contraband wireless device is disclosed in co-pending, co-ownedU.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/703,052, filed Dec. 4, 2019, whichis hereby incorporated herein by reference.

Headphones 105 may, in certain embodiments, include physical(mechanical) buttons. In accordance with various embodiments of thepresent systems and methods, such buttons may be used as a skip forsongs, to control headphone volume, to pause and resume playback, or thelike. Additionally, or alternatively, in some embodiments, pressing acertain combination of such buttons on the wireless headphones mayresult in issuance of an emergency alert to signal an emergency tocontrolled-environment facility personnel, such as to a correctionalfacility officer. Further, in some embodiments the headphones maysignal, audibly, or visually, that the headphone's battery is going todie. Headphones 105 may be able to be charged wirelessly, may be waterresistant, etc., in accordance with various embodiments.

Computer-based environment components may include programing and/orhardware to implement embodiments of the present systems and methods.This programming may take the form of stored program instructions,programed firmware, or the like, while hardware might take the form ofan Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC), or the like, to carryout such aspects of embodiments of the present systems and methods.

Thus, in accordance with embodiments of the present systems and methods,a controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice (IRD 110), or the like, may include at least one processor and amemory coupled to the at least one processor, such as discussed ingreater detail below, with reference to FIG. 3. This memory may beconfigured to store program instructions executable by the at least oneprocessor. Such program instructions may include acontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice operating system and/or a controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device headphones app.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of process 200 for dedicating a set of headphonesfor use restricted to a particular controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device, etc., in accordance withsome embodiments of the present systems and methods. Therein use of aparticular set of wireless headphones, which may include a microphone,is restricted to use with a particular controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device. To wit, at 205, a respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice (110) disposed within a controlled-environment facilitywirelessly communicatively links a respective set of wireless headphones(105) with the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device. To this end a wireless headphones app(persistently) running on the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device, and/or the operating system of thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice may wirelessly communicatively link the set of wirelessheadphones with the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device, at 205.

At 210, the respective set of wireless headphones is restricted to usewith the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device, such as by serializing the headphonesusing serial numbers of the headphones and the controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device, during a pairingprocess, thereby dedicating the respective set of wireless headphones touse with the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device. To wit, this linkage may usepredetermined assignment of a particular set of headphones to aparticular controlled-environment resident communication and/or mediadevice, or the like. To such ends a wireless headphones app(persistently) running on the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device, and/or the operating system of thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice may dedicate the set of wireless headphones to thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice by restricting use of the set of wireless headphones to use withthe controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, at 210. In some embodiments, there may be restrictions thatrestricts the respective set of wireless headphones to not allow it tobe “paired” or otherwise linked to another controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device.

Additionally, the controlled-environment facility may be enabled toconfigure the controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device, the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device wireless headphones app, the set ofwireless headphones, and/or the association(s) therebetween, remotely.Likewise, the controlled-environment facility may also be enabled toremotely monitor communication by and/or between thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice and the dedicated set of wireless headphones. Such whichcommunications may be carried out via the controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device wireless headphonesapp, in various embodiments.

In accordance with some embodiments of the present systems and methods,the controlled-environment facility (120) may issue, a wirelesslytransmitted notification to one or more of the controlled-environmentfacility controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia devices disposed within the controlled-environment facility and/ordirectly to one or more of the sets of wireless headphones disposedwithin the controlled-environment facility, at 215.

At 220, respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device(s) (e.g., the wireless headphonesapp(s) (persistently) running on the respective controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device(s)), and/orrespective sets of wireless headphones, directly, receiving thenotification may interrupt play of media on the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice and/or the respective sets of wireless headphones, by muting,pausing, terminating, etc. play of the media in a manner best suited forthat media. For example, playback of content stored on the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice may merely be paused, while streaming recorded content may beterminated, to be restarted later, live-streaming content may be muted,for the duration of the notification/announcement, etc. Regardless, at225, the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device plays the notification over the set ofwireless headphones dedicated to use with the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, and/or a set of wireless headphones receiving the notification,directly, plays the notification, directly. Such direct notificationsmay be sent directly to (a) set(s) of wireless headphones bybroadcasting the notification on (a) frequenc(y)(ies) used by theshort-range protocols employed in accordance with embodiments of thepresent systems and methods by the set(s) of wireless headphones.

Further, in accordance with embodiments of the present systems andmethods, the controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device, may be able to detect short-range wireless signalsnot associated with the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device and/or the dedicated set of wirelessheadphones at 230. At 235, the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device, may generate an alert to thecontrolled-environment facility, and/or a centralized investigative dataaggregation and analysis system (170), to a location of the detectedshort-range wireless signals. Additionally, or alternatively, thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, may transmit (forward) the short-range wireless signals to thecontrolled-environment facility, and/or the centralized investigativedata aggregation and analysis system, for monitoring. Likewise, one ormore controlled-environment facility communication and/or media devices(110) and/or wireless headphones (105) may be used for contrabandwireless communication device detection, through short-rangecommunication protocol signal detection, and/or the devices and/orheadphones may each include a radio frequency detection mechanismconfigured to detect presence of electromagnetic energy emissions in oneor more frequency bands reserved for wireless communication by wirelesscommunication devices. In such embodiments, each controlled-environmentfacility communication and/or media device reports detection of thepresence of the electromagnetic energy emissions in one or morefrequency bands reserved for wireless communication by wirelesscommunication devices and/or short-range communication protocol signalsto the investigative data aggregation and analysis system (170), similarto step 235. The location of the reporting device(s) and/or signalstrength of the emission(s) and/or short-range signals may be used bythe investigative data aggregation and analysis system to determine alocation, within the controlled-environment facility, of a contrabandwireless communication device emitting the electromagnetic energyemissions and/or short-range communication protocol signal.

Thus, elements of the various embodiments of the present systems andmethods, such as the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device headphones app, may be exclusivelyoffered on controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia devices offered or provided by a particular controlled-environmentfacility vendor. Similarly, the wireless headphones of the presentsystems and methods may be exclusively offered, or otherwise provided bythe same controlled-environment facility vendor, for exclusively linkingto a particular controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device provided by the controlled-environment facilityvendor. Thereby, the app or operating system of thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevices provided by the controlled-environment facility vendor maydisallow all other short-range communication standard devices fromparing with it, while, the wireless headphones offered by thecontrolled-environment facility vendor may be configured to only allowconnection, via short-range wireless protocol, or the like, to aspecified controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device provided by the same controlled-environment facilityvendor. Thereby, the wireless headphones and controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media devices of the presentsystems and methods may be co-branded, in accordance with the above.

Embodiments of the present systems and methods, wherein headphones arerestricted to use with a particular controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device, as described herein, may beimplemented in part as, or executed, at least in part, by one or morecomputer systems. One such computer system is illustrated in FIG. 3. Invarious embodiments, computer system 300 may be a server, a mainframecomputer system, a workstation, a network computer, a desktop computer,a laptop, a tablet computing device, media player, or the like. Forexample, in some cases, computer 300 may implement one or more steps ofexample process 200 described above with respect to FIG. 2, and/or acomputer system such as computer system 300 may be used as part of, oneor more of: controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media devices (IRDs) 110; controlled environment facilitycommunication processing systems 115; controlled-environment facilityvendor data center 125; IFDs 140; centralized investigative dataaggregation and analysis system 170; non-resident communications devices160; and/or the like. In various embodiments two or more of thesecomputer systems may be configured to communicate with each other in anysuitable way, such as, for example, via public network 130, which may bethe Internet, or the like, as discussed above, via a local area networkusing wired or wireless functionality, etc.

As illustrated, computer system 300 includes one or more processors310A-N coupled to a system memory 320 via bus 330. Computer system 300further includes a network interface 340 coupled to bus 330, and one ormore I/O controllers 350, which in turn are coupled to peripheraldevices such as cursor control device 360, keyboard 370, display(s) 380,etc. Each of I/O devices 360, 370, 380 may be capable of communicatingwith I/O controllers 350, for example, via a wired connection (e.g.,serial port, Universal Serial Bus port) or wireless connection (e.g.,Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Near Field Communications Link, etc.). Other devicesmay include, for example, microphones, antennas/wireless transducers,phone detection modules, etc.

In various embodiments, computer system 300 may be a single-processorsystem including one processor 310A, or a multi-processor systemincluding two or more processors 310A-N (e.g., two, four, eight, oranother suitable number). Processors 310 may be any processor capable ofexecuting program instructions. For example, in various embodiments,processors 310 may be general-purpose or embedded processorsimplementing any of a variety of instruction set architectures (ISAs),such as the x86, POWERPC®, ARM®, SPARC®, or MIPS® ISAs, or any othersuitable ISA. In multi-processor systems, each of processors 310 maycommonly, but not necessarily, implement the same ISA. Also, in someembodiments, at least one processor 310 may be a graphics processingunit (GPU) or another dedicated graphics-rendering device.

System memory 320 may be configured to store program instructions and/ordata accessible by processor 310. In various embodiments, system memory320 may be implemented using any suitable memory technology, such asstatic random-access memory (SRAM), synchronous dynamic RAM (SDRAM),nonvolatile/Flash-type memory, or any other type of memory. Asillustrated, program instructions and data implementing certainoperations and modules such as those described herein may be storedwithin system memory 320 as program instructions 325 and data storage335, respectively. In other embodiments, program instructions and/ordata may be received, sent, or stored upon different types ofcomputer-accessible media or on similar media separate from systemmemory 320 or computer system 300.

A computer-accessible medium may include any tangible and/ornon-transitory storage media or memory media such as electronic,magnetic, or optical media—e.g., disk or CD/DVD-ROM coupled to computersystem 300 via bus 330. The terms “tangible” and “non-transitory,” asused herein, are intended to describe a computer-readable storage medium(or “memory”) excluding propagating electromagnetic signals, but are notintended to otherwise limit the type of physical computer-readablestorage device that is encompassed by the phrase computer-readablemedium or memory. For instance, the terms “non-transitorycomputer-readable medium” or “tangible memory” are intended to encompasstypes of storage devices that do not necessarily store informationpermanently, including for example, random access memory (RAM). Programinstructions and data stored on a tangible computer-accessible storagemedium in non-transitory form may further be transmitted by transmissionmedia or signals such as electrical, electromagnetic, or digitalsignals, which may be conveyed via a communication medium such as anetwork and/or a wireless link.

In an embodiment, bus 330 may be configured to coordinate I/O trafficbetween processor 310, system memory 320, and any peripheral devices inthe computer system, including network interface 340 or other peripheralinterfaces, such as I/O devices 360, 370, 380. In some embodiments, bus330 may perform any necessary protocol, timing, or other datatransformations to convert data signals from one component (e.g., systemmemory 320) into a format suitable for use by another component (e.g.,processor 310). In some embodiments, bus 330 may include support fordevices attached through various types of peripheral buses, such as avariant of the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus standard orthe Universal Serial Bus (USB) standard, for example. In someembodiments, the function of bus 330 may be split into two or moreseparate components, such as a northbridge chipset and a southbridgechipset, for example. In addition, in some embodiments some or all thefunctionality of bus 330, such as an interface to system memory 320, maybe incorporated directly into processor(s) 310A-N.

Network interface 340 may be configured to allow data to be exchangedbetween computer system 300 and other devices attached to a network,such as other computer systems, or between nodes of computer system 300.In various embodiments, network interface 340 may support communicationvia wired or wireless general data networks, such as any suitable typeof Ethernet network, for example; via telecommunications/telephonynetworks such as analog voice networks or digital fiber communicationsnetworks; via storage area networks such as Fibre Channel SANs, or viaany other suitable type of network and/or protocol.

I/O controllers 350 may, in some embodiments, enable communications withone or more display terminals, keyboards, keypads, touchpads, scanningdevices, voice or optical recognition devices, mobile devices, or anyother devices suitable for entering or retrieving data by one or morecomputer system 300. Multiple I/O controllers 350 may be present incomputer system 300 or may be distributed on various nodes of computersystem 300. In some embodiments, I/O devices may be separate fromcomputer system 300 and may interact with one or more nodes of computersystem 300 through a wired or wireless connection, such as over networkinterface 340.

As shown in FIG. 3, system memory 320 may include program instructions325, configured to implement certain embodiments described herein, anddata storage 335, comprising various data may be accessible by programinstructions 325. In an embodiment, program instructions 325 may includesoftware elements, which may be configured to affect the operationsdiscussed in FIGS. 1 and 2. Program instructions 325 may be implementedin various embodiments using any desired programming language, scriptinglanguage, or combination of programming languages and/or scriptinglanguages (e.g., C, C++, C#, JAVA®, JAVASCRIPT®, PERL®, etc.). Datastorage 335 may include data that may be used in these embodiments(e.g., recorded communications, profiles for different modes ofoperations, etc.). In other embodiments, other or different softwareelements and data may be included.

A person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that computersystem 300 is merely illustrative and is not intended to limit the scopeof the disclosure described herein. The computer system and devices mayinclude any combination of hardware or software that can perform theindicated operations. In addition, the operations performed by theillustrated components may, in some embodiments, be performed by fewercomponents or distributed across additional components. Similarly, inother embodiments, the operations of some of the illustrated componentsmay not be provided and/or other additional operations may be available.Accordingly, systems and methods described herein may be implemented orexecuted with other computer system configurations.

The various operations described herein, particularly in connection withFIGS. 1 through 3, may be implemented in software executed by processingcircuitry, hardware, or a combination thereof. The order in which eachoperation of a given method is performed may be changed, and variousoperations may be added, reordered, combined, omitted, modified, etc. Itis intended that embodiment(s) described herein embrace all suchmodifications and changes and, accordingly, the above description shouldbe regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.

Although the present invention and its advantages have been described indetail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions andalterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit andscope of the invention as defined by the appended claims. Moreover, thescope of the present application is not intended to be limited to theparticular embodiments of the process, machine, manufacture, compositionof matter, means, methods and steps described in the specification. Asone of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate from thedisclosure of the present invention, processes, machines, manufacture,compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps, presently existing orlater to be developed that perform substantially the same function orachieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodimentsdescribed herein may be utilized according to the present invention.Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to include within theirscope such processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter,means, methods, or steps.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system restricting use of a set of wirelessheadphones to use with a particular controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device, the system comprising: arespective set of wireless headphones disposed within acontrolled-environment facility; a respective controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device disposed within thecontrolled-environment facility, the respective controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device configured to:wirelessly communicatively link the respective set of wirelessheadphones with the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device; and dedicate the respective set ofwireless headphones to the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device by restricting the respective set ofwireless headphones to use with the respective controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device.
 2. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device further comprises a wirelessheadphones application program installed and running on the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, configuring the respective controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device to wirelessly communicativelylink the respective set of wireless headphones with the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice and dedicate the respective set of wireless headphones to therespective controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device by restricting use of the set of wireless headphones to usewith the controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein an operating system ofthe respective controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device, configures the respective controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device to wirelesslycommunicatively link the respective set of wireless headphones with therespective controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device and dedicate the respective set of wireless headphones tothe respective controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device by restricting use of the set of wireless headphonesto use with the controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein restricting therespective set of wireless headphones to use with the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice further comprises serializing the respective set of wirelessheadphones using serial numbers of the respective set of wirelessheadphones and the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device, during wirelessly communicativelylinking the respective set of wireless headphones with the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice.
 5. The system of claim 1, wherein the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice is further configured to: interrupt play of media on therespective controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device, over the respective set of wireless headphones, inresponse to receipt of a notification wirelessly transmitted by thecontrolled-environment facility, within the controlled-environmentfacility; and play the notification over the respective set of wirelessheadphones.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the respective set ofwireless headphones is configured to interrupt play of media on therespective set of wireless headphones, in response to receipt of anotification wirelessly transmitted by the controlled-environmentfacility, within the controlled-environment facility; and play thenotification over the respective set of wireless headphones.
 7. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the controlled-environment facility isenabled to configure the respective controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device and the respective set ofwireless headphones, remotely.
 8. The system of claim 1, wherein thecontrolled-environment facility is enabled to monitor communicationbetween the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device and the respective set of wirelessheadphones, remotely.
 9. The system of claim 1, wherein the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice is further configured to: detect short-range wireless signals notassociated with the respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device and/or the respective set of wirelessheadphones; and generate an alert to the controlled-environment facilityto a location of, and/or transmit to the controlled-environmentfacility, the short-range wireless signals not associated with therespective controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device and/or the respective set of wireless headphones.
 10. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the respective set of wireless headphonescomprises a microphone.
 11. A method for providing wireless headphonesrestricted to use with a particular controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device, the method comprising:wirelessly communicatively linking, by a controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device disposed within acontrolled-environment facility, a set of wireless headphones with thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice; and dedicating, by the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device, the set of wireless headphones to thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice by restricting the set of wireless headphones to use with thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice.
 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising installing and/orproviding a wireless headphones application program on thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, and running the wireless headphones application program on thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, and wherein: wirelessly communicatively linking, by thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, the set of wireless headphones with the controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device further compriseswirelessly communicatively linking, by the application program, the setof wireless headphones with the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device; and dedicating, by thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, the set of wireless headphones to the controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device further comprisesdedicating, by the application program, the set of wireless headphonesto the controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device by restricting use of the set of wireless headphones to usewith the controlled-environment facility resident communication and/ormedia device.
 13. The method of claim 11, further comprising wherein:wirelessly communicatively linking, by a controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device, the set of wirelessheadphones with the controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device further comprises wirelesslycommunicatively linking, by an operating system of thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, the set of wireless headphones with the controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device; and dedicating, bythe controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, the set of wireless headphones to the controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device further comprisesdedicating, by the operating system of the controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device, the set of wirelessheadphones to the controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device by restricting use of the set of wireless headphonesto use with the controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device.
 14. The method of claim 11, wherein restricting theset of wireless headphones to use with the controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device further comprisesserializing the set of wireless headphones using serial numbers of theset of wireless headphones and the controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device, during wirelesslycommunicatively linking the set of wireless headphones with thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice.
 15. The method of claim 11, further comprising: issuing, by thecontrolled-environment facility, a wirelessly transmitted notificationto at least one controlled-environment facility resident communicationand/or media device disposed within the controlled-environment facility;interrupting, by a respective controlled-environment facility residentcommunication and/or media device, play of media on the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice; and playing, by the respective controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device, the notification over a setof wireless headphones dedicated for use with the respectivecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice.
 16. The method of claim 11, further comprising: issuing, by thecontrolled-environment facility, a wirelessly transmitted notificationto at least one set of wireless headphones disposed within thecontrolled-environment facility; interrupting play of media on therespective set of wireless headphones; and playing, by the respectiveset of wireless headphones, the notification over the respective set ofwireless headphones.
 17. The method of claim 11, further comprisingenabling the controlled-environment facility to configure thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice and dedicated set of wireless headphones, remotely.
 18. Themethod of claim 11, further comprising enabling thecontrolled-environment facility to monitor communication between thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice and the dedicated set of wireless headphones, remotely.
 19. Themethod of claim 11, further comprising: detecting, by thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, short-range wireless signals not associated with thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice and/or the dedicated set of wireless headphones; and alerting, bythe controlled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice, the controlled-environment facility to a location of, and/ortransmitting to the controlled-environment facility, the short-rangewireless signals not associated with the controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device and/or the dedicated set ofwireless headphones.
 20. The method of claim 11, wherein the set ofwireless headphones comprise a microphone.
 21. A non-transitorycomputer-readable storage medium having program instructions storedthereon that, upon execution by a controlled-environment facilityresident communication and/or media device disposed within acontrolled-environment facility, cause the controlled-environmentfacility resident communication and/or media device to: wirelesslycommunicatively link a set of wireless headphones with thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice; and dedicate the set of wireless headphones to thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice by restricting the set of wireless headphones to use with thecontrolled-environment facility resident communication and/or mediadevice.